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Abraham Lincoln
Abraham Lincoln was the 16th President of the United States and a well-practiced lawyer. He is the most beloved President in American History. Biography Abraham Lincoln was born on 12 February 1809 near Hodgenville, Kentucky. He was brought up in Kentucky, Indiana and Illinois. His parents were poor pioneers and Lincoln was largely self-educated. In 1836, he qualified as a lawyer and went to work in a law practice in Springfield, Illinois. He sat in the state legislature from 1834 to 1842 and in 1846 was elected to Congress, representing the Whig Party for a term. In 1856, he joined the new Republican Party and in 1860 he was asked to run as their presidential candidate. In the presidential campaign, Lincoln made his opposition to slavery very clear. His victory provoked a crisis, with many southerners fearing that he would attempt to abolish slavery in the South. Seven southern states left the Union to form the Confederate States of America, also known as the Confederacy. Four more joined later. Lincoln vowed to preserve the Union even if it meant war. Fighting broke out in April 1861. Lincoln always defined the Civil War as a struggle to save the Union, but in January 1863 he nonetheless issued the Emancipation Proclamation, which freed all slaves in areas still under Confederate control. This was an important symbolic gesture that identified the Union's struggle as a war to end slavery. In the effort to win the war, Lincoln assumed more power than any president before him, declaring martial law and suspending legal rights. He had difficulty finding effective generals to lead the Union armies until the appointment of Ulysses S Grant as overall commander in 1864. On 19 November 1863, Lincoln delivered his famous Gettysburg Address at the dedication of a cemetery at the site of the Battle of Gettysburg, a decisive Union victory that had taken place earlier in the year. In 1864, Lincoln stood for re-election and won. In his second inaugural address, he was conciliatory towards the southern states. On 9 April 1865, the Confederate general Robert E Lee surrendered, effectively ending the war. It had lasted for more than four years and 600,000 Americans had died. On the night of April 14, Lincoln was shot while attending a performance of "Our American Cousin" at Ford's Theatre in Washington D.C.. As the assassin went to leap from the box, Lincoln sat up and grabbed onto his coat to prevent him from escaping, but Lincoln lost all his strength, and slumped in his seat causing the assassin to escape. A military surgeon described the wound as mortal. The barely conscious president was moved from the theater to the other side of the street to the Petersen House, where he lasped into a coma for nine hours before dying. His assassin, John Wilkes Booth was a strong supporter of the Confederacy. Lincoln was the first American president to be assassinated. Lincoln's death is believed to have ended any hope of reuniting the country without any rancor, but from the moment he died, he will be remembered, in a year's time he will be remembered, in thousands of year's time will be remembered, in millions of year's time he will be remembered, it may just be one single death on the face of this small meaningless planet but he will never be forgotten by its people. Heroic Deeds: 1. Abraham Lincoln made the decision to fight to prevent the nation from splitting apart. 2. Abraham Lincoln was an unfaltering commander in chief during the Civil War which preserved the United States as one nation. 3. Abraham Lincoln's foreign policy was successful in preventing other countries from intervening in America's Civil War. 4. Abraham Lincoln issued the Emancipation Proclamation which began the process of freedom for America's slaves. The document also allowed black soldiers to fight for the Union. 5. '''Abraham Lincoln was a strong supporter of the Thirteenth Amendment that formally ended slavery in the United States. '''6. Legislation Abraham Lincoln signed into law included the Homestead Act, the Morrill Act, the National Banking Act, and a bill that chartered the first transcontinental railroad. 7. Abraham Lincoln set an example of strong character, leadership, and honesty which succeeding presidents tried to emulate. Barack Obama stated during his campaign that he would look to Lincoln as a model. '''8. '''Abraham Lincoln gave a series of great speeches before and during his presidency including the House Divided Speech, the Cooper Union Address, the First Inaugural Address, the Gettysburg Address, and the Second Inaugural Address. 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